Filling-station machine



March 11, 1930. c CHRISTOPHER 1,750,389

FILLING STATION MACHINE Filed Sept. 28, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l /4 .Ckr'ib luv;

zgllDlIl/F la 30 $5 a a attomwq o March 11, 1930; F, CHMSTOPHER 1,750,389

FILLING STATION MACHINE abtormmgo Patented Mar. 11, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FILLING-STATION MACHINE Application filed September 28, 1928. Serial No. 309,079.

This invention aims to provide a novel means whereby the cost of any number of gallons of gasoline, at any specified. pr ce, may be ascertained readily. Another ob ect of the invention is to provide a device wherein the price of the gasoline per gallon will be shown plainly, and to provide a means whereby both the buyer and the seller can find out quickly and accurately the amount of change that is to be returned, after a sale,

out of a bill or coin of a specified value.

It is within the province of the disclosure to improve generally and to enhance the utility of devices of that type to which the invention appertains.

With the above and other objects in view, which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combina tion and arrangement of parts and in the de tails of construction and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, may be made within the scope of what is claimed,

without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 shows in front elevation, a device so constructed in accordance with the invention;

Figure 2 is a rear elevation wherein the closures have been partly opened;

Figure 3 is a fragmental section.

In carrying out the invention, there is rovided a support 1, which may be in the orm of a vertically elongated frame, containing an upper compartment 2, and a lower compartment 3. A frame 4: is secured at 5 to the support 1, and carries a transparent plate 6 which extends across the front of the upper compartment 2. A closure 7 for the upper compartment 2 is provided, the closure being pivotally mounted at its upper end, as shown at 8, on the rear portion of the support 1.

The member 7 tends to swing downwardly to a closed position at the back of the upper compartment 2, the member 7 being shown in a partially opened position in Figure 2.

Within the upper compartment 2 are located a stack of cards or tablets 9. There may be asmany of these tablets as desired. Each tablet is marked as shown at 10, with the word Gas, and is marked as indicated at 11, with the price at which the gasoline. sells. The operator can swing open the closure 7, and change the cards 9 around, so that the card which carries the current price of the gas will be at the front of the pack in the upper compartment 2, and be prominently visible through the transparent plate 6.

A frame 12 is secured at 1 1 to the support 1 and carries a transparent plate 15 that eX- tends across the front of the lower compartment3. A closure 16 for the back of the lower compartment 3 is provided the closure being pivotally mounted at 17 on the support 1, in the way hereinbefore described in connection with the closure 7.

In the lower compartment 3 there is a pack of cards or tablets, indicated at 18. Each card is marked as at 19 to show the price at which the gasoline is selling. There is a line of numerals 20 to show the amount of gasoline that has been sold. The column of numerals shown at 21 indicates the cost of the number of gallons specified in the columns marked by the numeral 20. The next column, designated by the numeral 22, shows the value of the piece of money that the purchaser has tendered, for instance, a onedollar bill, a twodollar bill, a five-dollar bill, and so on. The column indicated at 23 specifies the amount of change which the purchaser ought to re ceive. Referring to the card which is exposed in Figure 1, it will be obvious, for instance, that if a person has bought two gal lons of gas at 22 per gallon he should pay 44 and if he offers a dollar bill in payment, he will have 56 in change coming to him. The marks on the cards 18 may be carried out as far as desired, a few marks only being shown. When the price of gas changes the operator can open the member 16 of Figure 2 and shift the cards around to bring for- 5 ward, behind the transparent plate 15, the proper card for the price current.

The numeral 24 marks a casing which is held by securing elements 25, such as a screw, on the support 1, the casing 24 being located between the upper compartment 2 and the lower compartment 3. A dial 26 is fixedly mounted on the securing element 25. A disk 27 is located behind the dial 26 and is adjustably rotatable on the securing element or shaft 25. The fixed dial 26 has an opening 28 that exposes a. line of numerals 29 which are inscribed on the disc 27, and the operator can turn the disc 27 so as to bring any of the numerals 29 opposite to the zero point 30 of the dial. 526, the dial having an index 31 that cooperates with the zero point 30.

The fixed dial 526 has a radial opening 32, and numerals are inscribed on the fixed dial, near to the opening 32. The rotatably adjustable disc 27 has numerals 34, cooperating with the numerals 33 on the fixed dial. hen the machine is set, as shown in Figure 1, the work on a twenty-two cents basis, the operator can refer to the proper one of the numerals 33, in connection with the proper one of the numerals 34, and find out, for instance, that 7 gallons of gas at 22 per gallon will cost $1.54. It the purchaser has tendered a two-dollar bill, for instance, the seller can refer to the card 18 and note that the purchaser has 46 in change coming to him.

On the face of the fixed dial 26 there is a table 35 of fractions, which is useful for many purposes. If, for instance, a person buys three gallons of liquid that sells for half-adollar a gallon, the table at 35 will show that a payment of $1.50 is due.

The device forming the subject matter of this application is simple in construction and it atl'ords means whereby computations may be made, both as to the price of merchandise, and as to the amount of change which is to be handed back to the buyer. Although it has been presupposed herein, for the sake of simplicity, that gasoline is the commodity that is being handled, the machine is not limitcd to that end, but may be used for any purpose to which it is adapted.

The support 1 is provided at its upper and lower ends with angles 100 which are arrai'iged symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis of the support. The index 31 extends along a line joining the angles 100, and the parts 31 and 100 constitute mechanism for aiding an operator to set the support in a vertical position, so that the closures 16 will tend to swing by gravity to perfectly closed positions with respect to the compartments.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

In a machine of the class described, a vertical support provided at its upper end with an angle, and at its lower end with an angle, the angles being arranged symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal axis of the support, the support being provided at a point near to its upper end with a compartment, and at a point near its lower end With a compartment, there being a space between the compartments, closures for the rear of the compartments, pivot elements connecting the upper ends of the closures to the support, whereby the closures will tend to swing downwardly by gravity to closed position with respect to the compartments when the support is vertically disposed, and mechanism for aiding an operator to set the support in a vertical position, said mechanism comprising an index located on the front side of the support, in said space, the index extending along a line joining the aforesaid angles of the support.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature.

CALVIN F. CHRISTOPHER. 

